Your IoT devices could soon become the only way you pay for things

A new way to burn a hole in your wallet

IoT technology as a payment method? The way the IoT (Internet of Things) is expanding it seems only a matter of time. IoT devices are communicating with garages, homes and cars so why not monetary transactions? Say for example you pull up to gas station. Instead of swiping your debit/credit card at the pump or paying the guy behind the counter you tap an in-dash device or your app.

FTD’s (Financial Transaction Devices)

According to an eMarketer article, research think-tanks Cognizant, Marketforce and Pegasystems surveyed 500 senior banking and insurance executives. Some 20.4% of respondents said that wearables will become common financial transaction methods within the next 12 months.

Cost versus use

It’s easy to see that the IoT has a wide-ranging impact across a variety of categories be it healthcare, travel or even real estate.

But the cost of such devices may initially prove to be prohibitive or at least somewhat discouraging. Recent studies have shown that although protection is a huge concern for many, the cost of IoT devices is what the public is having a hard time wrapping themselves around.

Welcome to the IoFT (Internet of Financial Things)

Recent studies have focused on grassroots-level useage: a wearable device that allows you to pull up your bank account. A television that allows you to look for and purchase goods and services. But a recent article on Co-opthink points out that IoT technology regarding finances has more tangible applications. Many that we are already seeing or soon will be:

Real-time payments – P2P is already a given, but in the IoT universe, electronic payments should transact instantaneously.

Alerts and more alerts – Just as a health monitor provides instant feedback, so should triggers on one’s accounts. Apps like CardNav, which send spending or security alerts to a user’s mobile device based on real-time data, create a sense of constant connectivity.

Alternative ATM access – As mobile payments take root, mobile-based ATM access seems inevitable.

This new connected universe is evolving before our eyes. Real-time information and transactions are the end game. Are we running fast enough to keep up?

#IoFT